The Emergence of Korean Esports and its Implications in the Global Esports Sphere: from socio-cultural contexts

Korea Colloquium
 

Dal Yong Jin
Distinguished Professor, School of Communication, Simon Fraser University 

Dal Yong Jin is a Distinguished Professor at Simon Fraser University.  Jin’s major research and teaching interests are digital platforms and digital games, globalization and media, transnational cultural studies, and the political economy of media and culture. Jin has published numerous books, journal articles, and book chapters. His books include Korea’s Online Gaming Empire (2010), Digital Platforms, Imperialism and Political Culture (2015), New Korean Wave: transnational cultural power in the age of social media (2016), Artificial Intelligence in Cultural Production: Critical Perspectives on Digital Platforms (2021), and Understanding Korean Webtoon Culture: Transmedia Storytelling, Digital Platforms, and Genres (2022). Jin has also published articles in scholarly journals, such as New Media and Society, The Information Society, and Media, Culture and Society. In May 2022, Jin was inducted as an International Communication Association (ICA) fellow. He is the founding book series editor of Routledge Research in Digital Media and Culture in Asia. He has been directing The Transnational Culture and Digital Technology Lab since the summer of 2021.  

Chaired by Chan Yong Bu, Assistant Professor of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University

Abstract:
In the early 2020s, millions of global youths participate in esports as gamers and viewers every day. With the rapid growth of various game platforms, in particular, online and mobile, people around the world enjoy these new cultural activities. As esports attracts crowds of millions more through online video streaming services like Twitch, the activity’s popularity as one of the most enjoyable sports and business products continues to soar. While several countries in the Global North, such as the U.S. and Germany, advanced their own esports gaming and culture, Korea has rapidly become one of the primary forces in global esports culture. Based on its distinctive socio-cultural characteristics, Korea has become one of the most significant countries in digital gaming and esports, and it has been known as the capital of esports by both national and international media and game players. Korea has also influenced the development of global esports. By focusing on a historiography of esports in Korea, this talk articulates the historical backgrounds for the emergence of esports in tandem with Korea’s unique socio-cultural milieu. It attempts to identify the major players and events which contributed to the formation of esports culture, in particular mass spectatorship. Then, it discusses the ways in which Korean esports has impacted on the formation of global esports through the comparison of various elements, including cultural, social, and economic factors, between Korean esports and North American esports. 

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Generously supported by the Young-Chul Min Memorial Fund at the Korea Institute, Harvard University